EL SEGUNDO — In a move Rob Pelinka called “essential” to getting the Lakers back on top, the Lakers traded top reserves Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday, netting two-time All-Star Isaiah Thomas, veteran Channing Frye and a 2018 first-round pick.

Thomas and Frye will both become free agents following the season, giving the Lakers up to as much as $70 million in salary cap space that would allow the organization to sign two elite players to maximum contracts either this summer or in 2019.

“This is what I came here to do,” President of Basketball Operations Magic Johnson said, “was to create flexibility for our organization so that one day we can have a superstar or two come to this organization with our incredible young talent that we have.”

The blockbuster deal was first reported three hours before the NBA’s trade deadline, and kickstarted a flurry of activity that saw the Cavs completely overhaul their roster in hopes of winning another championship before LeBron James becomes a free agent in July.

The Lakers, of course, will be among the first in line to meet with James when free agency begins, and after Thursday they have the flexibility to offer max deals to both him and Oklahoma City forward Paul George, or sign one of those players this summer and add another max player 12 months later.

Despite the Lakers’ long-held emphasis on this summer, the free-agent class the following year is even more robust, with Kawhi Leonard, Klay Thompson and Jimmy Butler all potential targets.

“It is not either 2019 or 2018,” said Pelinka, the Lakers general manager. “It could be one in each year if we wanted it to be, two in 18 (or) two in 19 or just sticking with our young core and growing these guys. We will have many things to look at and we will make those decisions when they come.”

Nance, a native of Akron, Ohio, will play under his father’s retired No. 22 jersey. In an Instagram post, Nance wrote he is “forever grateful” to the Lakers and that his two-plus seasons with the franchise were “an unbelievable experience and I couldn’t be happier with where I started this journey.”

Both he and Clarkson will be part of their first playoff team.

“It’s always tough,” Coach Luke Walton said following the Lakers’ morning shootaround Thursday. “You get close with these guys. J.C and Larry were a huge part of what we’ve been doing here in the short time that we’ve been here. They’ve … really bought into what we do and elevated their games. They’ve been great teammates taking different roles.

“We’re going to miss them, but they’re going to a good situation. They’ll get to experience playoff basketball. I’m happy for them for that. We’ll miss them and we’re very thankful for what they’ve given us.”

An original second-round pick of the Washington Wizards in 2014 and traded to the Lakers on draft night, Clarkson was averaging 14.5 points off the bench this season. Nance, mined late in the first round of the 2016 draft, was a favorite of Walton’s and started 17 games this season, averaging career highs in points (8.6) and rebounds (6.8).

Thomas appeared in just 15 games with Cleveland after getting traded from Boston, where he averaged a career-high 28.9 points per game last season and finished fifth in Most Valuable Player voting. He missed the first 36 games of this season with a hip injury.

He was the key piece of a package traded by Boston to the Cavaliers for Kyrie Irving last summer. The Lakers will be Thomas’ fifth team after the Sacramento Kings made him the final pick in the 2011 draft.

Pelinka said Thomas will not be bought out of his contract, a theory that was floated in the early moments following the trade.

“Isaiah’s playing here,” he said. “We can’t wait to get him here. He’s so excited.”

The 5-foot-9 superstar automatically becomes the Lakers’ most dynamic player but is not expected to get in the way of Lonzo Ball, the point guard drafted second overall and labeled the “face of the franchise” by Johnson last summer.

“Lonzo is our starting point guard,” Johnson said Tuesday. “That hasn’t changed. He’s a young man that gives us so many different options in what he can do but we also value what I.T. can bring to this team. He can give us some of that scoring punch that left with Jordan.”

Walton said he was “excited to get” Thomas on the court.

“He’s a great player,” Walton said. “He’s still coming back from injuries. I think the more time he’s on the court and playing his game will continue to get better. He’s obviously proven he’s been an All-Star in this league before. He can shoot the ball. He knows how to win. Excited to get him in here.”

In 2014, Thomas told Grantland that he was interested in signing with the Lakers in 2014 before eventually inking a deal with Phoenix.

“I always envisioned myself playing with the Lakers,” said Thomas, whose father was born and raised in Inglewood.

Prior to the trade deadline, the Lakers had won 11 of 15 games and positioned themselves with an outside shot at the playoffs.

But that progress, while significant, is only one piece of the Lakers’ puzzle.

“It was hard for us to give up our two young players,” Johnson said, “but I don’t want to stay in 11th place. I don’t want this organization to stay there, so we have to make moves to be able to put us in the playoffs. In position to sign great free agents one day.”

Bill Oram covers the Los Angeles Lakers for the Southern California News Group. He covered the Utah Jazz for the Salt Lake Tribune. He is the (usually) bearded guy in the background wearing a University of Montana hat.

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